Twice a Hero, Once a legend
by X6a55a55in
Summary: All he wanted was to avenge his friends. What happens when he gets his chance? LinkxMipha
1. Chapter 1

**Twice a Hero, Once a Legend**

**Chapter 1: In Haste's Folley **

Link climbed the final stairs of Hyrule castle, ready as he could be to face Calamity Ganon. He took a deep breath to calm his nerves, gripped the royal claymore tightly and stepped into the chamber where he and the others had been crowned champions by king Rhoma. The feeling of malice that permeated the entire castle grew with each step, the beast was near but, as link searched he could not find it. He saw the massive size of the beast shortly after waking from the shrine of resurrection. There was no way a monster of that size could be anywhere else. Link didn't have to wait very long as light shown from an egg like sac that hung from the ceiling.

"Link…" Zelda's voice called out. "Link…I'm sorry…but my power isn't strong enough…I can't hold him…"

Link flipped back as a guardian laser ripped through the sac and tore across the room, leaving a scorching trail etched into the stone. He shielded his eyes from the dust and rubble as the sac hissed as steam spread through the cuts before breaking and dropping the physical mass of malice that was Calamity Ganon. The stone floor cracked under the weight of the beast sending both the hero of Hyrule and its scourge to a sealed off room for their final battle. Link opened his paraglider and coasted down taking in the full view of Ganon's form. It seemed as if it had absorbed the body of a guardian near his back while several arms protruded from his back wielding different ancient weapons, some of which he hadn't seen before. As Link landed just to the side of the great beast it turned its near skull like face, amass with crimson hair to stare down Link before unleashing a mighty roar that echoed throughout the land.

"Now my moment has finally come. Brace yourself, Ganon, for the sting of my revenge!" Revali's spirit proclaimed.

"This will be our final opportunity. We will not fail!" Mipha's spirit decreed.

"Let's go, little guy! Now! Open up wide, Ganon!" Daruk's spirit shouted.

"A hundred years in the making…Hold on princess. Our moment has arrived!" Urbosa's spirit announced with a snap of her fingers.

As the spirits of the champions gave their final war cry the divine beasts fired their weapons. From the four corners of the land the weapons collided in the room above the final showdown.

Ganon stared down Link, seething hatred towards the hero of legend as a familiar bright blue light show above them. It craned its head to look at the unknow source, only for the combined might of the four ancient Divine Beasts to crash down upon it. Link watched as the beast howled in pain, similar to the blights that had been purged from each Divine Beast. The blast tore off chunks of the gelatinous malice that made up most Calamity Ganon's form. As the blast finally subsided the beast roared again and glared at Link. At first the beast was going to toy with the would-be hero but now? Now he was going to die.

The beast lunged forward at Link swinging wildly with its red ancient axe like the ones the more powerful guardians would use. Link danced between the wild swings trying his best to find a chance to land a hit but Ganon was relentless. Link jumped over one of the swings and landed on the solid head of the axe. Taking his opportunity, he plunged the royal claymore deep into the malice of Ganon's body the beast howled out in pain but recovered quickly, swatting Link away. Link watched in horror as the claymore sunk into Ganon's body and out of sight. He readied another weapon, a very strongly enhanced guardian axe and charged the beast.

Another laser fired from Ganon, and another shield shattered after the reflection. Link took out his last weapon with labored breaths one of the Yiga clan's blades. It was his last hope, in his rush to save the princess and all of Hyrule he was unable to find the sword that seals the darkness, and he was regretting it. Ganon skittered along the walls of the area, a gurgled chuckle echoed throughout as it charged another laser outside of Link's striking distance. The last thing Link saw was a flash of bright blue light from Ganon's laser.

Pain racked through Link for only a moment as he was incinerated. As he opened his eyes he was in a room he had not seen before. Several windows lined the room but each showed a different scene. One showed a wolf running through a canyon with a small demon-like creature on its back, another showed a Goron chasing down a massive goat. Link looked around in confusion before an unfamiliar voice pulled his attention elsewhere.

"I wondered when I would get to meet the Hero of Hyrule." A radiant female's voice spoke. As she did the images in the windows vanished and white light flooded the room. "Valiant hero of Hyrule, who twice gave his life fighting Ganon. I am the goddess Hylia. Here you will be judged and sent either to my Gardens or to the very depths that spawned Ganon, though I doubt you have much to fear."

"P-please" Link whimpered.

"I'm sorry?" Hylia asked. Most mortals that came through her domain began begging for redemption if the feared they would go to the depths, was the hero perhaps guilty of some darkness even she was un aware of?

"Send me back. Please!" Link begged as tears welled up in his eyes. "I already failed them once I cannot fail again!"

"Great hero I-" Hylia spoke.

"Please anywhere, anytime, anyplace!" Link shouted as he bowed his head to the floor no longer able to hold back his tears. "Revali, Daruk, Urbosa, Zelda...Mipha. I cannot fail them again! Please Great goddess Hylia, send me back so that I can avenge my fallen friends and loved ones! Please I beg of you!"

To say Hylia wasn't moved by Links desperate plea would be a lie, there was only one problem. "Hero, if this is your wish I will grant it but be it known. This will be the only chance you have, as well as I cannot send you back to that arena. You will be sent back to a moment in time before Calamity Ganon's resurrection. Any ties you made during your journey will not be waiting for you. Only you will retain your memories and there is a chance that being sent that far back will drive you mad. Are you sure this is what-"

"Yes." Link stated.

As he lifted his head to meet her gaze, Hylia saw no hesitation in his eyes. To this hero, no price was too great to save those that he cherished. With a sigh Hylia smiled softly to the boy. "Very well then, I suppose our meeting must be postponed. Good luck to you Hero, May luck be on your side this time." She said and with a dismissive wave the window behind Link shattered outwards, pulling him through before it reformed.

Link snapped back to reality staring out at a massive body of water he nearly started to panic when a familiar voice caught his attention.

"Link? Are you alright?"

He knew that voice and tears started to well in his eyes once more as he slowly turned towards her. There sitting next to him was none other than the Zora princess, Mipha. "If you are still in pain show me where it hurts and I'll AHH!" Mipha gasped as Link pulled her into a tight hug and started sobbing

"Mipha, you're here, it worked." Link chocked out between his heavy sobs.

Mipha gently wrapped her arms around the young hero with a soft smile. "Do not worry Link, I am not going anywhere."


	2. Chapter 2: Champion's Meeting

**Chapter 2: Champion's Meeting**

It took some time for the Hylian to calm himself. Granted it took much less time as the Zora princess did her best to sooth away his worries.

"Please Link." Mipha requested in her soothing tone. "Tell me, what is it that caused you such sudden anguish?"

"I- I don't know if you'll believe me." Link replied.

"Link, there is little you could say to me that I would doubt." Mipha encouraged.

With a heavy sigh, Link gathered his thoughts and gave her a nod. "I am not the same Link that sat her before you moments ago. I am from the future, roughly one-hundred years in the future." He explained as Mipha gave him a confused look. "You don't believe me." He sighed.

"Link, I, I want to believe you but you have to admit that sounds impossible. Traveling through time? No one would be able to do-" Mipha rationalized.

"Is the Zora armor you have been making for me complete yet?"

"H-how do you k-know about that!?" Mipha exclaimed in embarrassment. "Did Sidon tell you!? I swear to Nayru I will-"

"Mipha, I told you. I am from the future." Link repeated.

Mipha stared deeply into Link's eyes searching for any hint of a joke. "Y-your serious, Link what happened?" she asked.

"Calamity Ganon overpowered us." Link told her. "The guardians, even the divine beasts were infected by his malice and hatred."

"How could the divine beasts fall to him?" Mipha asked in confusion. "The link the champions have with each beast is nearly unbreakable."

"Y-you all." Link stammered out. "Y-you all died. Ganon sent creatures, born of his will and attacked you all. In the end, you were all ambushed." He said as his tears started to fall again. "I woke up and after learning what I had to do I made my way to the closest divine beast, Vah Ruta. Your father remembered me almost right away and, after giving me the Zora armor and telling me about your intentions behind it, tried to get me to remember something. It took a while but, I finally remembered this moment ironically. Muzu, had been giving me a hard time, and by some extent your father since he had no idea you had feelings towards me. As him and Sidon argued about the truth I was lost in the memory of this moment. I snapped back to reality and fell to my knees, crying. And after purging Ruta of Ganon's monstrosity, I saw you again." Link said as he looked up at Mipha.

"Link I am so terribly sorry. There is no way I could understand the pain you must have gone through, finding out about each of our deaths, only to be forced to fight that which felled your friends." Mipha apologized. "What do we need to do?"

"We need to warn Zelda and gather the other champions. I also need to figure out how long we have before Calamity Ganon's arrival and make sure we are ready to come out on top, possibly without the help of the divine beasts. If they are needed, we will need to make sure everyone is safe and able to defeat Ganon as quickly as possible." Link explained.

"Very well, I shall inform my father and we will head to Hyrule castle together. I suspect Zelda may need some extra convincing of time travel." Mipha said before bringing them both to shore. "Get a head start on the road, I will swim along the river and catch up with you after I inform father."

"Thank you Mipha and don't worry about Zelda, I think her and the others will be fairly easy to convince." Link said before sprinting out of Zora's Domain.

Once he crossed the main bridge out of the domain, Link hopped on his horse and sped towards Hyrule castle, sticking close to the river bed. Hylia gave him this chance and he was not going to waste it. He was just about to reach the border of the Lanayru wetlands when Mipha surfaced to his left.

"Climb on Mipha." Link said as he brought his horse to a stop.

Mipha jumped out of the water and quickly mounted Links horse. She didn't say anything but she was scared. She had never seen Link like this and, in all honesty, she was still struggling to believe that he was from the future. The sun had already started setting when Link came back to this time and he did not want to be caught out in the night. This was urgent, he needed to get everyone together as quickly as possible. He felt terrible for pushing his horse so hard but it needed to be done.

Link and Mipha sped up to the stables just outside of the castle's gates and dismounted from the horse, giving the obviously exhausted creature a well-deserved rest and approached the nearby royal guards. "We need to meet with Princess Zelda immediately, do either of you know where she is at the moment?" Link asked.

"Sir, last we were aware she was staying up late looking into ways to access her sealing power. What is wrong?" One of the guards asked. Link didn't give him an answer. Instead, he grabed Mipha's hand and lead her towards the royal library. The dim, flickering light of a candle's flame could be seen through the ornate glass of the door, hopefully she was still awake Link thought to himself as he knocked on the door.

Zelda opened the door with a puzzled look on her face. "Link? What are you and Mipha doing here and at this hour? I thought you were going to be staying at the Zora's domain for at least a couple of days." She asked.

"Zelda, I need to hold an emergency meeting with you and the other champions immediately. Our plans against Ganon will fail." Link warned.

Zelda pinched the bridge of her nose and sighed. "Link, I have told you this before, with the divine beasts and that sword on your back we will emerge victorious just as our ancestors did, now if you don't mind I need to focus on awakening the sealing power inside of me before-"

"Damnit Zelda, will you stop and listen to me for once!" Link shouted. "You need to trust me on this and get the champions here as soon as possible!"

"Fine." Zelda huffed. "I will humor you this once, however you may want to rethink your tone in future conversations with me. Mipha, your grace, I apologize for all of this I can have a spare room set up for you shortly if you would like, it may take a while for the other champions to arrive after I send out the summons and I'm sure the both of you are exhausted."

"Thank you, your highness. That would be greatly appreciated and if it helps I am inclined to take Link's side on this matter, if there is even a chance our plans could fail we should hear him out." Mipha said subtly trying to argue for Link's side.

"I know and I apologize Link, I am under a lot of stress and am understandably tired. I will summon you when everyone has gathered and we can discuss your beliefs Link." Zelda said with a yawn. "I will have the guards set out at once, hopefully we will have everyone here by mid-day or early evening tomorrow. Good night to the both of you."

Link turned to Mipha as Zelda walked away. "I'm sorry about that, at the moment Zelda and I are not on the best of terms."

"It is ok Link, in all honesty I have noticed that she is quite unfair to you at times." Mipha said, trying to ease his mind.

"Thank you Mipha." Link said with a smile. "I think we both need some sleep after today. Shall I see you in the morning?"

"Of course, Link." Mipha said with a contained smile. "I don't have anything else set for tomorrow except your meeting with us all. Perhaps afterwards you could help us understand what exactly happened?"

"I plan on it Mipha, I don't want to lose anyone again." He said. "Good night Mipha."

"Goodnight Link." Mipha replied wearing the same smile.

"Champions of Hyrule." Zelda spoke. "I have called you here today by request of my appointed knight, Link, stating that it is urgent and regards our plans against Ganon. I will let him speak so that we may all learn what has gotten him so worked up."

Link stood in front of the champions as Zelda stood between Revali and Urbossa. "My fellow champions I bring us horrible news." He announced. "Our plans for dealing with Ganon are flawed. This will be hard for you to believe however, I am not the same Link you may have been with anytime past yesterday evening. I am from 100 years into the future, in that time Ganon had defeated us, taken control over all the guardians and divine beasts and…" He trailed off at the end. He may not have had the memories of his friend's deaths but knowing they died still dealt the damage.

"Well that's a lot to take in little guy." Daruk said before heading over to pat him on the back, holding back his strength after knowing he started hurting Link each time. "But you were never the kind of guy to make up a wild story. Besides, this kind of stuff is way over my head anyway."

"Agreed." Mipha chimed. "In all our time together, I have never heard you tell an outlandish story for the sake of a joke."

"I'll agree you have not lied before Link, but this is serious business if it's true." Urbossa warned.

Zelda gave a heavy sigh. "So, let me make sure I understand you correctly Link. You are claiming that you are from 100 years in the future, which I must point out you have not explained how you managed to accomplish this, and if that is true then our plans for defeating Ganon are going to fail. Supposedly the four champions are ambushed and killed inside their divine beasts and then what?" Zelda asked.

"I will warn you, after the 100 years I have amnesia from what took place before save for a few key moments." Link warned. "However, from what I can remember, on your seventeenth birthday we all journeyed to the shrine of wisdom. The champions stayed behind at the entrance while I joined you at the shrine for protection. There you spent most of the day trying to access your sealing magic but were unable to. As we were all consoling you Ganon resurrected around Hyrule castle and launched his attack. I am guessing that's when he sent four monstrosities to attack the divine beasts. The champions quickly headed to their divine beasts but fell to the horrors that were waiting for them. You and I headed to the castle to fight Ganon unaware that it took control of the guardians we had restored and several that were buried under the castle. You and I were attacked and I did my best to protect you. It quickly became apparent that I was not going to survive much longer against what seemed like an endless wave of them. One climbed over a couple of the ones I had destroyed and took aim at me. I am unsure if Ganon had ordered me as the primary target or it took aim at the closest threat but either way as it charged its beam you jumped in front of me and unleashed a blast of your sealing magic. With that you cleansed the guardians of Ganon's malice and overloaded their systems, rendering them useless."

"So what happened in the end there little guy?" Daruk asked.

"After Zelda cleansed the guardians my body succumbed to my wounds and I fell unconscious. From there I only have what others have told me happened but from what I have heard, Zelda sent a couple of Sheika members to carry me to the shrine of resurrection where I was placed in sort of a healing slumber to save my life. While that happened, she went off to fight Ganon alone." Link explained.

"So the hero chosen by the sword got hurt and took a 100 year nap?" Revali asked in his usual condescending tone.

Link's eyes passed over his friends, trying to gauge how much they could believe his story. Mipha's hands curled into fists for just a moment after Revali's comment, Urbossa was deep in thought, Daruk was deeply concerned, Revali, while showing his usual bravado, did seem to have a hint of concern locked away behind his eyes. Zelda, however, was the hardest one to read, she carried herself with a stony cold expression as if she either didn't believe him or was choosing not to believe him.

"I know of only one way to prove to you all that what I have said has been true, or at the very least, add to my credibility and I beg your forgiveness princess. I can recite Princess Zelda's diary up until the entrance on her seventeenth birthday. While storming Hyrule castle to face Ganon, I came across her diary. I thought it might hold some secret that I would need to defeat Ganon and so I read it." Link proclaimed.

Zelda's stony exterior broke and turned to one of anger. "I don't believe you would do such a thing." She said in a cold tone.

"Then please forgive me princess, but if this is the only way for everyone to take me seriously then I have no other choice." Link apologized before reciting Zelda's diary entries.

"Well Princess? Is what your appointed knight says accurate?" Revali asked with a smirk.

Zelda remained silent for a while, glaring at Link. "What Link has stated is in fact written in my diary as of this moment." She said while trying to retain her composure.

"Then, that means Link was telling the truth!" Mipha exclaimed, partially in joy, and partially in shock. If he was telling the truth, then what he said at the lake on top of Ruta's trunk was true as well. She would have to ask him more about it later and if he had an answer. The later thought created a heavy knot in her stomach.

Revali's wings dropped to his side in shock. "W-well, good thing we cleared that up."

"I believed in you little guy!" Daruk exclaimed before giving his friend a hearty slap on the back.

"To be fair, Link's character would have been enough of a vouch for me." Urbossa said. "Princess, I can tell you are upset. How about I take a walk with you."

"Thank you Urbossa, I would gladly appreciate the company." Zelda said with a stressed sigh. "Thank you all for coming, I feel as though we will need to have another meeting with my father so I would like to request that you all stay here for the next couple of days if it is not too much to ask."

With a nod from the champions, the meeting was adjourned and everyone went their separate ways. Before she left Link reached out and gently grabbed Mipha's arm. "Mipha, do you. Do you have a moment?" Link asked.


	3. Chapter 3: Timeless Love

**Chapter 3: Timeless Love**

Before she left Link reached out and gently grabbed Mipha's arm. "Mipha, do you. Do you have a moment?" Link asked.

"Of course, Link, is there something wrong?" She asked trying to set her nerves aside.

"No, well, I hope not." Link stammered as he led her to a small pond inside the castle grounds. There were a few minutes of silence between the two as they let their feet dangle in the water before Link broke the silence. "Mipha, I need to ask. After accepting I am from the future, have your feelings for me changed?" he asked.

"W-what do you mean Link?" Mipha asked.

"Do you still love me?" He asked. "Do you still want to give me the Zora armor that you made?"

Mipha swallowed a lump that had formed in her throat. She hadn't had the proper time to prepare herself for this. What if he rejected her feelings? She wished that she could get a feel on how he felt towards her right now, it would make everything so much easier. Link had always been harder for her to read than most other people, be it due to her feelings, his generally quiet nature or both she wasn't completely sure but right now he stared at the water waiting for her answer. She took a deep breath. She had to take this chance, after all according to Link, she never got one before. "Y-yes, yes I do" she finally managed to say as her grip tightened around the champions garb that had been gifted to her not too long ago. "You are still you Link. Even if you are from the future, you are still the same man that I fell in love with."

"I see, thank Hylia." Link said as he tried to hold back tears of joy. "You have no idea how happy it makes me to hear that."

"Link, I know this may be hard for you but, can you tell me what happened in your time?" She asked. "Of course, if it is too painful then you don't have to answer. I just want to know what happened."

"I'll, I'll try." Link said. "After I woke up from resting in the shrine of resurrection for 100 years I heard Zelda's voice guide me to this ancient tower. Once I activated it and solved a few puzzles from nearby shrines, I was given a paraglider so that I could safely make my way down from the Great Plateau. From there I felt a pull towards Zora's domain. I'm not sure why but if I had to take a guess, I think subconsciously I wanted to check to see what had happened to you as soon as I could. Once I got to Inogo bridge I met Sidon who guided me to the domain. It didn't take long for your father to recognize me and welcome me as a friend. Muzu and most of the other elders didn't take kindly to my sudden return though. Your father asked me to help calm Vah Ruta since it had been spouting water for quite some time, to the point that the east reservoir was at risk of flooding. He said I needed shock arrows to hit the controls on Ruta to get the water to stop and that Muzu knew where I could get them but that I would need to be able to swim up waterfalls to even have a shot. That's when he gave me the Zora armor you had made for me." He explained. "He didn't tell me about the intent behind it though, Muzu did that on his own, though it was more of him complaining and storming off from your father. I tried it on afterwards and was surprised at how well it had fit me. I don't know how you could get my measurements in secret so well but it was a perfect fit. Once I had on the armor I went looking for Sidon and Muzu. Sidon had left after Muzu to try and convince him to tell us the location of shock arrows to take down Ruta. I walked in on the conversation just as Sidon was explaining to Muzu that I was the one you had feelings for. Muzu of course didn't believe him saying that even as I looked up at the statue of you I had no memory of you." Link said with a sad look on his face. "That's when it came to me. I looked at your memorial statue and I remembered the moment on Ruta we were in the middle of sharing yesterday. You told me that no matter what, if anyone tried to hurt me, you would be there to heal me." He said as he turned to face her with a warm smile. "You also asked that once the whole issue with Ganon was over if we could spend some time alone together. Sadly, that's where the memory ends. The next thing I knew, I was on all fours, crying silently. Muzu said something about me quivering like a hatchling and asked what was wrong. Looking back, I'm sure he didn't care but when I told him I remembered you he said that I was lying and just making up something so that I could get him to tell me where the shock arrows were. Once Muzu looked at the armor and realized what Sidon said was true he told us where to get the shock arrows we needed. Once I got the arrows me and Sidon went to calm Ruta. It was a little challenging but eventually I was able to get inside Ruta and, with your encouragement, activated all the terminals to take back control. Once I got inside the main control room and tried activating the control unit, the monstrosity that Ganon created attacked." Link said as he started to struggle getting his words out.

"Link, if it is too painful you don't need to continue anymore." Mipha said. She didn't want to cause him anymore pain then what he already had to go through.

"It's ok Mipha, I just need a minute." Link said as he took a few deep breaths to calm his nerves. After a few minutes of the two of them sitting there in silence link took another deep breath before continuing his story. "Once the monstrosity appeared your spirit warned me about it and told me that is what killed you all those years ago, after hearing that I lost focus a little. I wanted this thing to suffer. Of course, that didn't last long, after it got a couple hits in on me and your spirit called out asking if I was ok I calmed down a little and re-focused. The fight went smoother after that and it wasn't long before it withered away into nothingness. Then, like I said before, I saw you. Well, technically it was your spirit. You thanked me for freeing you and Ruta and promised that should I ever need healing, you would be there." Link finished as he gently wrapped his hand around hers. "Mipha, I never got to thank you for everything you did for me. Because of your power, I managed to make my way all the way to Ganon. Mipha, I am so sorry I failed you before. I promise I won't let it happen again, I want to spend the rest of our lives together and nothing is going to come between us again. I promise."

Mipha's eyes welled with tears. "Does that mean what I think it means?" She asked.

"Mipha, I gladly accept your armor and all that it means." Link said with a smile as tears began to fall from his eyes again. "I love you, and not even Calamity Ganon will keep me from you this time."

Mipha could not hold herself back any longer and threw herself into Link's arms. It was there that the newly engaged couple shared their first kiss.


End file.
